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Attorney General Sessions Announces Expansion and Modernization of Program to Deport Criminal Aliens Housed in Federal Correctional Facilities

Attorney General Jeff Sessions today announced the expansion and modernization of the Department’s Institutional Hearing Program (IHP).

The IHP identifies removable criminal aliens who are inmates in federal correctional facilities, provides in-person and video teleconference (VTC) immigration removal proceedings, and removes the alien upon completion of sentence, rather than releasing the alien to an ICE detention facility or into the community for adjudication of status.  Bringing an Immigration Judge to the inmate for a determination of removability, rather than vice versa, saves time and resources and speeds hearings.

The program is coordinated by the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

“We owe it to the American people to ensure that illegal aliens who have been convicted of crimes and are serving time in our federal prisons are expeditiously removed from our country as the law requires,” said Attorney General Sessions.  “This expansion and modernization of the Institutional Hearing Program gives us the tools to continue making Americans safe again in their communities.”   

The expansion and modernization of the IHP program will occur in the following three ways:

          1. ICE, BOP, and EOIR will expand the number of active facilities with the program to a total of 14 BOP and 6 BOP contract facilities;

          2. EOIR and BOP will increase each facility’s VTC capabilities and update existing infrastructure to aid in the ability to conduct removal proceedings; and

          3. EOIR and ICE will finalize a new and uniform intake policy. EOIR and ICE expect to have reached agreement on this new intake process by April 6, 2017.  

These improvements will speed the process of deporting incarcerated criminal aliens and will reduce costs to taxpayers. Read more about Deportation of criminal aliens expedited by Atty. Gen. Sessions

SEATTLE – A previously deported Mexican national charged with child rape, who was recently released by local authorities despite an immigration detainer, is among the 84 foreign nationals arrested during a three-day operation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Alaska, Oregon and Washington targeting at-large criminal aliens, illegal re-entrants and immigration fugitives.

Of those arrested during the enforcement action, which ended Monday, 60 had criminal histories, including prior convictions for sex crimes, drug offenses and domestic violence. In addition to the pending child rape charge, the Mexican national referenced above had prior convictions for assault, domestic violence, and immoral communications with a minor. Others taken into custody during the operation included:

·         A Russian national felon arrested in Portland whose criminal record includes a prior conviction for possession of methamphetamine; and

·         A previously deported Mexican national with pr­­ior convictions for domestic violence and assault.

CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS*

*Note: criminal aliens with multiple prior convictions are categorized based on their most serious conviction.

The operation, conducted by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), targeted criminal aliens who pose a public safety threat and individuals who have violated our nation’s immigration laws, including those who re-entered the country after being deported and immigration fugitives ordered deported by federal immigration judges.

Some of the individuals arrested during the enforcement action will be presented for federal prosecution for re-entry after deportation, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Those not being criminally prosecuted will be processed for removal from the country. Individuals who have outstanding orders of deportation, or who returned to the United States illegally after being deported, are subject to immediate removal from the country.

“This operation highlights our commitment to promoting public safety through the pursuit of targeted criminals residing in the U.S. illegally,” said Bryan Wilcox, acting field office director for Seattle ERO. “Our officers will continue in their efforts to create safer communities by identifying and removing those not willing to comply with U.S. laws.”

Last week’s arrestees (77 men and 7 women) included nationals from 12 countries – Mexico (64); Guatemala (8); Honduras (2); El Salvador (1); United Kingdom (1); Cambodia (1); Brazil (1); Laos (1); Philippines (2); Western Samoa (1); Myanmar (1); and Russia (1).

King County accounted for the largest number of arrests during the operation, but ERO personnel conducted enforcement actions in a total of 20 communities.

COUNTY ARREST TOTALS

ICE deportation officers carry out targeted enforcement operations every day in locations around the country as part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to protect the nation, uphold public safety, and protect the integrity of our immigration laws and border controls. These operations involve existing, established Fugitive Operations Teams. 

During such enforcement operations ICE officers frequently encounter additional suspects who may be in the United States in violation of federal immigration laws. Those persons will be evaluated on a case by case basis and, when appropriate, arrested by ICE.

# ICE #

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security.
ICE is a 21^st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

For more information, visit: www.ICE.gov.  To report suspicious activity, call 1-866-347-2423. Read more about More than 80 arrested in Pacific Northwest ICE operation targeting criminal aliens, illegal re-entrants, immigration fugitives

On February 1, 2017 Oregon’s Multnomah County had 203 of the 967 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) prison system; the county was second in foreign national crime in the state with 20.99 percent of the criminal aliens in DOC prisons.

The following table reveals how Multnomah County residents were harmed or victimized by the 203 criminal aliens incarcerated on February 1st in the DOC prison system with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) immigration detainers.
 

  Read more about Oregon’s Multnomah County Second in Foreign National Crime in February 2017

The Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) February 1, 2017 Inmate Population Profile indicated there were 14,594 inmates incarcerated in the DOC’s 14 prisons.

Data obtained from the DOC indicated that on February 1st there were 967 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the state’s prison system; more than one in every sixteen prisoners incarcerated by the state was a criminal alien, 6.63 percent of the total prison population.

Some background information, all 967 criminal aliens currently incarcerated in the DOC prison system were identified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a federal law enforcement agency that is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. If an inmate is identified by ICE as being a criminal alien, at the federal law enforcement agency’s request, DOC officials will place an “ICE detainer” on the inmate. After the inmate completes his/her state sanction, prison officials will transfer custody of the inmate to ICE.

Using DOC Inmate Population Profiles and ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the total number inmates, the number of domestic and criminal alien inmates along with the percentage of them with ICE detainers incarcerated on February 1st in the state’s prisons.
 

  Read more about Oregon Department of Corrections: Criminal Alien Report February 2017

On February 1, 2017 Oregon’s Washington County had 191 of the 967 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) prison system; the county was third in foreign national crime in the state with 19.75 percent of the criminal aliens in DOC prisons.

The following table reveals how Washington County residents were harmed or victimized by the 191 criminal aliens incarcerated on February 1st in the DOC prison system with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) immigration detainers.
 

  Read more about Oregon’s Washington County Third in Foreign National Crime in February 2017

Despite media reports of a massive crackdown by President Trump on illegal immigrants, just a tiny percentage of the nearly 1 million on the government's deportation list have been arrested...

The 680 seized in recent sweeps by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement agents...

....moves to deport illegals, many with criminal records and slapped with "final orders of removal" after exhausting their court appeals.

He said that ICE has custody of just 11,006, or 1 percent, of the 950,062 ordered deported.

"As of May 21, 2016, there were 950,062 aliens with final orders of removal on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) national docket. Of those aliens, 939,056 were on ICE's non-detained docket and 11,006 were on ICE's detained docket," said Homan's answer to questions from Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley.

As it moves to find those not detained, ICE is beefing up its force, hiring up to 15,000.

There are an estimated 3 million illegal immigrants with criminal records in addition to their illegal status and the administration has said it will make them a priority for removal...

Immigration experts said that sanctuary cities are mostly to blame for the huge number of illegal immigrants with deportation orders who are not in custody.

"The question I think people should be asking is, 'Why are there so many criminal aliens who are at large?'" said Jessica M. Vaughan, director of policy studies for the Center for Immigration Studies.

"Why does ICE have to take to the streets to find these people? One reason is because so many criminal aliens have been released by sanctuary policies. If you look at the list of cities where these operations took place, many of them are sanctuaries. ICE has to do these kinds of operations when they are prevented from arresting criminal aliens while they are in jail," she added.

She explained that those slated for removal from the United States are often simply floating in cities, either not required to check in with authorities or ignoring that requirement.

In Homan's answers to Grassley, he said that "Individuals on ICE's non-detained docket with final orders of removal are released under conditions designed to ensure their compliance with their immigration obligations."

Vaughan translated: "11,006 of the 950,062 aliens with final orders of removal (exhausted all appeals) were in detention. The rest were at large. The 'conditions' they mention usually means 'own recognizance,' or no conditions, or bond, no reporting requirements, or calling an automated phone line to check in, or wearing an ankle bracelet, or checking in with an ICE officer in person – in that order of frequency, as far as I know. In other words, most of these people were just in the wind." Read more about ICE: 950,000 illegals with 'removal orders' free, raids get just a sliver

On January 1, 2017 Oregon’s Marion County had 232 of the 953 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) prison system; the county was first in foreign national crime with 24.34 percent of the criminal aliens in DOC prisons.

The following table reveals how Marion County residents were harmed or victimized by 232 criminal aliens incarcerated on January 1st in the DOC prison system with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) immigration detainers.
 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 January 17.

This table reveals, using the DOC ICE detainer numbers from January 1st, the total number criminal alien inmates incarcerated in the DOC prison system by type of crime from all Oregon counties, the total number of criminal alien inmates from Marion County in DOC prisons by type of crime and the percentage of those alien inmates who were from the county by type of crime.
 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 January 17.

The following table reveals the self-declared countries of origin of the majority of the 232 criminal aliens with ICE immigration detainers who have harmed or victimized the residents Marion County in the DOC prison system.
 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Report ICE inmates list 01 January 17.

Criminal aliens from 20 different countries have harmed or victimized the residents of Marion County.

David Olen Cross of Salem, Oregon writes on immigration issues and foreign national crime. He is a weekly guest on the Lars Larson Northwest Show. He can be reached at docfnc@yahoo.com or at http://docfnc.wordpress.com/ Read more about Oregon’s Marion County First in Foreign National Crime in January 2017

On January 1, 2017 Oregon’s Multnomah County had 201 of the 953 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) prison system; the county was second in foreign national crime with 21.09 percent of the criminal aliens in DOC prisons.

The following table reveals how Multnomah County residents were harmed or victimized by 201 criminal aliens incarcerated on January 1st in the DOC prison system with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) immigration detainers.
 

  Read more about Oregon’s Multnomah County Second in Foreign National Crime in January 2017

The Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) January 1, 2017 Inmate Population Profile indicated there were 14,617 inmates incarcerated in the DOC’s 14 prisons.

Data obtained from the DOC indicated that on January 1st there were 953 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in the state’s prison system; more than one in every sixteen prisoners incarcerated by the state was a criminal alien, 6.52 percent of the total prison population.

Some background information, all 953 criminal aliens currently incarcerated in the DOC prison system were identified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a federal law enforcement agency that is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. If an inmate is identified by ICE as being a criminal alien, at the federal law enforcement agency’s request, DOC officials will place an “ICE detainer” on the inmate. After the inmate completes his/her state sanction, prison officials will transfer custody of the inmate to ICE.

Using DOC Inmate Population Profiles and ICE detainer numbers, the following table reveals the total number inmates, the number of domestic and criminal alien inmates along with the percentage of them with ICE detainers incarcerated on January 1st in the state’s prisons.
 

  Read more about Oregon Department of Corrections: Criminal Alien Report January 2017

Several sheriffs across the country have spoken out against the idea that sanctuary city policies give illegal aliens more confidence to work with local law enforcement. Sanctuary city advocates claim that many illegal aliens will not report crimes, even if they are the victims, because they are afraid their illegal status will be discovered and they will be deported.

"I've not even seen anecdotal evidence," National Sheriffs' Association executive director, Jonathan Thompson, told the Washington Examiner. "The sad thing is that [this claim] suggests that people here are aware of criminal activity and are not reporting it. We have to give them specific dispensation so that they're reporting crimes?”

Sheriff Chuck Jenkins of Frederick County, Md., who was called last April to testify in a House of Representatives hearing on the effectiveness of immigration policies, said, "I believe the illegal alien community is smart enough to know that there are protections in place that if they are victims, not to put them into removal custody…They can request a U-visa — basically gives them asylum from any deportation or removal."

Sam Page, a sheriff in Rockingham County, N.C., for almost 20 years, said, "Some people in government at those levels want to be able to pick and choose what laws they enforce. If there are laws on the books, then we enforce the laws. And the legislature and Congress, they enact legislation. If they don't like the laws, then they need to change the laws, but you don't pick and choose which laws you enforce."

You can read the full article at The Washington Examiner. Read more about Sheriffs dismiss a major Democratic talking point on sanctuary cities